Ball State University Athletics
Men's Basketball Hosts Bowling Green Wednesday Night
February 07, 2012 | Men's Basketball
What's On Tap . . .
The Cardinals continue their two-game home stand Wednesday evening as they host Bowling Green at 7 p.m. at Worthen Arena ... Wednesday's game will be broadcast by BSU SportsLink which will air the game online for free at www.ballstatesports.com ... The game will also be broadcasted by Cardinal Vision 57, Muncie Comcast Ch. 61, Comcast Indiana Ch. 81 (tape delay) and Fox College Sports (tape delay) ... Kyle Binder, Pat Boylan and Ashley Reed will provide the call for the broadcast ... The game will also be broadcast on 104.1 WLBC FM with Morry Mannies and David Eha providing the call.
Series History . . .
Wednesday's game marks the 75th meeting all-time between Ball State and Bowling Green ... The Cardinals trail the all-time series by a 40-34 margin and have dropped six out of the last eight to the Falcons, including a 65-64 loss last season on the road ... Forward Jarrod Jones led the Cardinals with 15 points and 14 rebounds while former Cardinal Malik Perry also posted a double-double with 10 points and 11 rebounds ... Tyrae Robinson added 12 points off the bench in the loss ... The Falcons were led by A'uston Calhoun who scored 15 points, while Jordan Crawford chipped in 10 points.
Ball State owns a 24-12 all-time record against the Falcons in Muncie, including a 13-3 mark in Worthen Arena ... The Cardinals posted a 64-59 victory over the Falcons last time in Worthen during the 2009-10 season.
Leading The Nation . . .
Senior guard Randy Davis leads all of NCAA Division I this season in assist/turnover ratio entering Saturday's game at 3.81 ... Davis has handed out 118 assists this season while only committing 31 turnovers ... He has a 3.8 assist/turnover ratio in Mid-American Conference play with 38 assists and 10 miscues ... His 3.8 ratio also leads the MAC in league games.
Davis was named the MAC West Player of the Week earlier this season (Jan. 23) for his efforts leading the Cardinals to road wins over Central Michigan and Northern Illinois ... He averaged 9.0 points, 8.0 assists, 5.0 rebounds and 1.5 steals per game ... Davis handed out 16 assists while only committing three turnovers in 62 minutes of action for the week for a 5.33 assist/turnover ratio .
Davis is second in the MAC at 5.7 assists per game ... Davis currently ranks 32nd in NCAA Division I in assists per game.
Vote For Coach Taylor . . .
Ball State men's basketball head coach, Billy Taylor, is proud to support Athletes In Action by participating in Infiniti's ongoing partnership with the National Association of Basketball Coaches, the NCAA and ESPN in the Infiniti Coaches' Charity Challenge ... The program includes a $100,000 donation to the winning coach's designated charity ... Expanding from 14 participating NABC coaches last season to 48 of the nation's top NCAA Division I Men's Basketball coaches this year, the total Infiniti contribution will be more than $300,000.
Fan participation will determine the ultimate winner over an eight-week period beginning January 18th by registering and voting on a custom microsite on www.ESPN.com/Infiniti.
Coaching Comparison . . .
Ball State is led by fifth-year head coach Billy Taylor ... Taylor has led the Cardinals to 60 wins over the past four-plus seasons, including a 19-win campaign last year which marked the 11th most wins in program history ... The Cardinals have finished either first or second in the Mid-American Conference West Division the past three years and have advanced to the MAC Tournament semifinals two out of the last three years.
Bowling Green is coached by fifth-year head coach Louis Orr ... Orr has a 171-157 career record, including a 71-87 mark at Bowling Green.
Scouting The Cardinals . . .
Ball State enters Wednesday's game with a 12-9 overall record and a 4-5 mark in Mid-American Conference play ... The Cardinals have dropped four straight games, including a 59-53 loss Saturday against Miami ... Ball State is averaging 64.7 points per game while allowing 59.5 points per game ... The Cardinals are shooting 42.5 percent (459-of-1079) from the field and 31.4 percent (129-of-411) from three-point land ... Opponents are 39.5 percent (435-of-1100) and 32.2 percent (130-of-404) from long range.
Senior forward Jarrod Jones leads the team in scoring at 16.8 points per game and on the glass at 8.7 rebounds per game ... Jones is shooting 52.5 percent (127-of-242) from the field and 82.2 percent (88-of-107) from long range ... Sophomore guard Jesse Berry is second on the team in scoring at 9.2 points per game and leads the team with 29 three-pointers.
Senior guard Randy Davis leads the team with 118 assists while chipping in 8.2 points per game ... Sophomore Chris Bond is second on the team in rebounding at 4.6 boards per game.
Scouting The Falcons . . .
Bowling Green enters Wednesday's game with an 11-11 overall record and a 5-4 mark in Mid-American Conference play ...The Falcons have posted back-to-back wins over Western Michigan and Northern Illinois ... Bowling Green is averaging 67.4 points per game while allowing 63.7 points per game ... The Falcons are shooting 46.1 percent (566-of-1229) from the field and 34.8 percent (102-of-293) from three-point land ... Opponents are shooting 43.1 percent (499-of-1159) from the field and 33.0 percent (116-of-351) from long range.
A'uston Calhoun leads the team in scoring at 13.0 points per game and is second on the glass at 5.8 rebounds per game ... Scott Thomas is second on the team in scoring at 11.8 points per game and leads the team on the glass at 6.8 rebounds per game ... Thomas leads the team with 36 three-pointers as he is shooting 37.9 percent from long range.
Jordan Crawford rounds out the Falcons in double figures at 11.2 points per game ... Crawford leads the team with 106 assists ... Torian Oglesby is third on the team on the glass at 5.0 rebounds per game and is shooting 81.2 percent (56-of-69) from the field this season.
Last Time Out . . .
Ball State suffered its fourth straight loss Saturday afternoon dropping a 59-53 contest against Miami ... The Cardinals trailed by 18 points early in the second half but rallied within three points in the final minute before falling by six points ... Ball State connected on just 33.3 percent (20-of-60) from the field and only 14.3 percent (3-of-21) from long range in the game compared to 54.1 percent (20-of-37) from the field and 50 percent (9-of-18) from three-point land for the RedHawks.
Freshman foward Aaron Adeoye scored eight points and grabbed a career-high 11 rebounds in the loss, eight of which came on the offensive glass ... Sophomore Tyrae Robinson added 14 points off the bench while junior Jauwan Scaife chipped in seven points.
Did You Know? . . .
Freshman forward Aaron Adeoye grabbed a career-high 11 rebounds Saturday against Miami, including eight offensive boards ... Adeoye's 11 rebounds are the most for a Ball State freshman since Jarrod Jones corralled 15 rebounds against Toledo January 25, 2009.
Behind The Numbers . . .
Ball State is 9-0 this season when it scores at least 70 points and was 14-4 last season when reaching the 70-point barrier ... The Cardinals are 12-3 this season when leading at the half with their only losses coming at No. 16 Arizona, vs. Eastern Michigan and vs. Akron ... Last season, the Cardinals were 12-2 when leading at the half ... Ball State is a perfect 9-0 this season when it hands out 15 or more assists ... Last year, the Cardinals were 10-2 when reaching at least 15 assists.
Ball State is 12-3 this season when it hits more free throws in a game than its opponent ... The Cardinals are also 10-5 this season when senior forward Jarrod Jones leads the team in scoring.
Double-Dipping . . .
Senior forward Jarrod Jones has posted six double-doubles this to raise his career total to 27 double-doubles ... Jones has accomplished the feat this season against Calumet College, Texas Southern, SIU Edwardsville, Florida A&M, Eastern Michigan and Ohio.
Jones recorded 11 points and 15 rebounds against Ohio earlier this year while sophomore forward Chris Bond posted his first double dip of the season with 14 points and 12 rebounds ... Jones and Bond became the first Cardinals' duo since February 9, 2011 at Bowling Green (Jones and Malik Perry) to accomplish the feat.
Heating Up From the Line . . .
The Cardinals hit 67.1 percent (186-of-277) from the free throw line during non-conference play this season but have upped its production to 73.7 percent (126-of-171) in Mid-American Conference play ... Ball State's 73.7 percent is second best in the MAC.
The Cardinals have three players in the top 12 in MAC play shooting from the line ... Sophomore Chris Bond is fifth in the MAC hitting 86.2 percent (25-of-29), senior Jarrod Jones is sixth at 86.1 percent (31-of-36) and senior Randy Davis is 12th at 81.8 percent (18-of-22) ... During MAC play, the Cardinals have posted two of their top free throw shooting games this decade ... The Cardinals hit 91.7 percent (11-of-12) at Buffalo and 88.2 percent (15-of-17) at Ohio.
Cardinals Vs. The MAC East . . .
The 2011-12 season marks the 15th season the Mid-American Conference has been in two divisions (West & East) ... Ball State, which has always been a member of the West Division, owns a 42-55 record against the East Division since the two-division format was implemented in the 1997-98 season.
The Cardinals posted a 1-5 record against the East Division last season and have an 0-4 mark so far this season ... Ball State has only posted a winning record against the MAC East Division three times in 14 years .. The Cardinals posted a 4-2 record in 2009-10, a 4-2 record in 2002-03 and a 5-1 mark during the 1997-98 campaign ... Ball State has recorded four .500 records against the East Division but have seven seasons below .500 against the East Division ... Ball State is 12-4 during the regular season against Buffalo, 7-4 against Bowling Green, 5-10 against Akron, 6-7 against Ohio, 4-8 against Kent State, 2-6 against Marshall and 6-16 against Miami since divisional play began.
Cashing In The Freebies . . .
Ball State seniors Randy Davis and Jarrod Jones rank in the top five in the Mid-American Conference this season in free throw percentage, the only team with two players in the top five ... Davis is second in the MAC from the line, hitting 86.9 percent (53-of-61), while Jones is fourth in the conference at 82.2 percent (88-of-107).
Davis had a stretch of 26 straight free throws made earlier this season, which was a career-high ... He posted 22 straight on two different occasions last year ... The Ball State record for consecutive free throws made is 41 set by Larry Bullington in 1971-72.
Defensive Prowess . . .
The Cardinals have been one of the top defensive teams in the Mid-American Conference and the country under fifth-year head coach Billy Taylor and this season is no different ... Ball State enters the game leading the MAC and ranking 23rd in NCAA Division I in scoring defense holding opponents to a 59.5 point per game average ... Also, the Cardinals are second in the MAC in field goal percentage defense at 39.0 percent, which places them 31st in the nation.
Last season, Ball State led the MAC and was 64th in the nation in scoring defense at 64.0 points per game while placing third in the league in field goal percentage defense at 42.0 ... Two years ago, the Cardinals also led the MAC in scoring defense and were 43rd in the nation at 62.4 points per game.
Home, Sweet Home . . .
Wednesday's game marks the 293rd game all-time for the Cardinals at Worthen Arena since it opened January 15, 1992 (previously named University Arena) ... Ball State owns a 214-79 record all-time at Worthen Arena as it has won 73.0 percent of its games at home ... The Cardinals are 7-3 so far this season at home with wins over IUPUI, Calumet College, Texas Southern, Butler, Chicago State, Florida A&M and Western Michigan.
Last season, the Cardinals posted an 11-3 record at home, including a 5-1 mark during non-conference play ... During its career, the Cardinals have averaged over 10.35 wins a season at home at Worthen Arena.
Sears BracketBusters . . .
The 10th annual Sears BracketBusters, a three-day men's college basketball event pitting potential NCAA Championship hopefuls against each other Feb. 17-19, and it features 13 nationally televised games - on either ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU or ESPN3 ... The NCAA hopefuls will be selected from a pool of 142 teams from 16 conferences.
Ball State is participating for the 10th season in the BracketBusters event and will host Missouri Valley Conference foe Southern Illinois ... Game time is set for 2 p.m. at Worthen Arena February 18.
Jones' Scoring Numbers . . .
Senior forward Jarrod Jones leads the Cardinals and is third in the Mid-American Conference in scoring at 16.8 points per game ... Jones ranks 86th in NCAA Division I in scoring this season ... He ranks 53rd in the country in field goal percentage at 52.5 percent (127-of-242), which is eighth best in the MAC.
Jones has scored at least 21 points in 10 of the 20 games this season, including three straight games for the first time in his career ... He scored 25 points against No. 16 Arizona in the season opener, scored a career-high 26 points against IUPUI and added 23 points against Calumet College ... He notched three-straight games of 20-plus points with 22 points against UT Martin , 22 at SIU Edwardsville and 21 against Butler ... He has notched 19 games of 20-plus points in his career, including 21 points last time out against Buffalo.
Climbing The Charts . . .
Senior forward Jarrod Jones moved into eighth place in Ball State history with 1,535 career points and is third all-time with 902 rebounds ... Jones surpassed Theron Smith and Steve Payne on the rebounding list with his 15 boards against Ohio ... Additionally, Jones is third all-time with 112 career starts ... Senior guard Randy Davis moved up to fourth all-time in assists with 420, surpassing Scott Nichols.
Scoring
6. Theron Smith, 1999-02 1,599
7. Duane Clemens, 1996-00 1,585
8. Jarrod Jones, 2008-11 1,535
9. Steve Payne, 1992-95 1,440
10. Peyton Stovall, 2003-08 1,383
11. Dan Palombizio, 1984-86 1,369
Rebounding
1. Ed Butler, 1961-64 1231
2. Randy Boarden, 1975-79 1000
3. Jarrod Jones, 2008-11 902
4. Steve Payne, 1992-95 885
5. Theron Smith, 1999-2002 882
Game Started
1. Bonzi Wells, 1994-98 114
2. Peyton Stovall, 2003-08 113
3. Jarrod Jones, 2008-11 112
3. Duane Clemens, 1996-2000 109
5. Randy Zachary, 1993-97 100
Assists
2. Chris Shelton (1982-86) 481
3. Mike Spicer (1988-92) 430
4. Randy Davis, 2008-11 420
5. Scott Nichols (1986-90) 406
6. Bonzi Wells, 1994-98 386
Leading The MAC . . .
Senior forward Jarrod Jones is the Mid-American Conference career active leading scorer with 1,535 points and is the career active rebound leader at 902 boards ... Jones leads the active scoring leaders by 144 points as Kent State's Justin Greene is second at 1,391 points and Ohio's D.J. Cooper is third on the list at 1,357 points ... He also owns a 160-rebound lead as Miami's Julian Mavunga is second on the list at 742 caroms while Greene is third with 736 rebounds
Cardinals On ESPNU . . .
The Cardinals have been chosen for an ESPNU national telecast for their game February 11 at Kent State ... Tip-off for that game is set for 11 a.m. at the M.A.C.C. in Kent, Ohio.
Additionally, the February 22 game at Western Michigan is also a STO broadcast ... The Cardinals also have one additional Ball State Sports Network broadcast after Saturday's game with their February 25 game at Eastern Michigan ... Ball State also has its February 8 game against Bowling Green being broadcast by BSU Sports Link.
Jones' Weekly Honors . . .
Senior forward Jarrod Jones has been named the Mid-American Conference West Division Player of the Week four times this season ... Jones is the only play in the MAC this season to earn multiple honors and has now garnered weekly accolades 10 times in his career.
Jones picked up his most recent honor last week after leading the Cardinals to two victories, including a 78-69 win over preseason MAC West Division favorite Western Michigan ... He averaged 17.5 points and 9.5 rebounds per game in the two victories.
Jones has picked up MAC West Player of the Week honors this season Nov. 14, Dec. 12 and Jan. 2.
Jones Earns January MAC Honor . . .
Senior forward Jarrod Jones was named one of five All-Mid-American Conference selections by CollegeHoops.net for his play in the month of January ... Jones averaged 15.7 points and 9.4 rebounds in the seven MAC games in January ... Joining him on the list for January include Miami's Julian Mavunga, Central Michigan's Trey Zeigler, Buffalo's Javon McCrea and Toledo's Rian Pearson.
Jones also was one of five selected for their play in the non-conference portion of the schedule, joining Mavunga, McCrea, Pearson and Ohio's D.J. Cooper.
Davis - Cousy Award Candidate . . .
For the second year in a row, Ball State senior point guard Randy Davis has been named one of 59 candidates for the 2012 Bob Cousy Collegiate Point Guard of the Year Award ... The annual honor, named for Hall of Famer and former Boston Celtic Bob Cousy, recognizes the top point guards in college basketball ... Davis is one of just two players from the Mid-American Conference (D.J. Cooper, Ohio) among the 2012 nominees and is just one of 12 players in the country that has made the exclusive list for two straight years
Lowe's Senior CLASS Award . . .
Senior forward Jarrod Jones has been selected as one of 30 candidates for the 2011-12 Lowe's Senior CLASS Award given to basketball student-athletes who excel on and off the court ... Jones is the first Cardinal to be selected as a candidate since Peyton Stovall was a finalist for the 2007-08 award.
To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as a NCAA Division I senior and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence - community, classroom, character and competition ... The 30 candidates will be narrowed to 10 finalists midway through the regular season, and those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot ... Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, Division I men's coaches and fans who will select one finalist who best exemplifies excellence in the four Cs of community, classroom, character and competition.
Cardinals Sign Four . . .
Ball State head coach Billy Taylor announced the signings of Michael Ramey (Indianapolis, Ind./Southport), Bo Calhoun (South Bend, Ind./Washington), Marcus Posley (Rockford, Ill./Rockford Auburn) and Mading Thok (Boyden, Iowa/Western Christian) to national letters of intent Friday morning during the early signing period.
Ramey, a 6-5 shooting guard, was recently ranked as a Top 25 Shooter in the country for the class of 2012 by ESPN.com after leading the state in three-point shooting as a junior, connecting on 52.4 percent (66-of-126) ... He averaged 19.5 points per game as a junior to earn First Team All-Conference honors.
Calhoun, a 6-6 forward, earned First Team All-Northern Indiana Conference honors last season after averaging 18.0 points and 9.1 rebounds per game ... He has led the Panthers to a 46-22 record during his first three seasons, including a 12-7 mark last season.
Posley, a 6-1 guard Illinois High School Association All-State honors as a junior as he averaged 19.4 points per game and 4.5 assists per contest ... He also picked up All-Northern Illinois Conference and All-Area accolades last season.
Thok, a 7-0 center, is a native of Bor, Sudan ... He averaged 8.5 points and 6.0 rebounds per game as a junior while shooting 54.3 percent from the field and 67.6 percent from the free throw line.
Cardinals Tabbed Second . . .
Ball State has been picked to finish second in the Mid-American Conference West Division preseason poll as selected by the MAC News Media Association ... The Cardinals were picked to finish second in the MAC West Division with 111 points, including nine first place votes, behind Western Michigan (128/14) ... The Cardinals finished last season with a 19-13 overall record and a 10-6 mark in MAC play, finishing second in the West Division ... The Cardinals returns nine letterwinners, including its top five scorers, from last season's team which posted the 11th most wins in program history.
Rounding out the MAC West Division are Central Michigan (92/1), Toledo (76), Northern Illinois (59) and Eastern Michigan (38) ... Reigning MAC regular season champion Kent State was selected to win the East Division with 132 total points, including 16 first place votes ... Akron was tabbed second with 104 points and eight first place votes followed by Ohio (94), Miami (80), Buffalo (62) and Bowling Green (32).
Kent State was also selected to win the 2012 MAC Tournament in Cleveland, Ohio as it received 12 of the 24 votes ... Akron was second with six votes followed by the Cardinals (3), Western Michigan (2) and Central Michigan (1).
Captains Earn MAC Honors . . .
Ball State senior captains Jarrod Jones and Randy Davis were named to the preseason All-Mid-American Conference West Division teams last week ... The two Cardinals were joined by Western Michigan's Flenard Whitfield and Demetrius Ward along with Central Michigan's Trey Zeigler on the West Division squad.
Jones highlights the MAC West Division preseason team, earning preseason accolades for the third time in his career ... He earned First Team All-MAC and MAC All-Tournament honors last season as a junior when leading the team in scoring at 14.7 points per game and rebounding at 8.4 caroms per game ...He scored double figures in 27 of BSU's 32 games, including five games of 20-plus points last season while posting 11 double-doubles.
Davis earns preseason All-MAC honors for the first time in his career after starting all 32 games last season as the Cardinals' point guard ... He averaged 9.8 points per game while leading the team with 160 assists and 48 steals ... He led the MAC from the free throw line connecting on 87.3 percent (117-of-134) while placing second in assists per game (5.0).
Looking Ahead . . .
The Cardinals close out the crossover portion of the schedule Saturday morning as they travel to Kent State ... Game time is set for an 11 a.m. tip-off and will be broadcast nationally on ESPNU.0
